LAHORE: As many as 393 schools across the country have been shortlisted for participation in the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) Under-17 Inter-School Champio­nships, scheduled to commence in September.

According to details, Karachi leads the list with 35 shortlisted schools, followed by Lahore with 30. Quetta and Peshawar regions have 20 schools each lined up for the tournament.

The PCB has appointed coaches and technical officials for all 16 regions. A virtual meeting was held on Thursday to finalise arrangements, chaired by PCB’s domestic cricket director Abdullah Khu­rram Niazi, and attended by regional coaches and regional cricket operations managers.

Despite annual inter-school tournaments already being held by various divisional educational boards, the PCB has decided to organise its own structured championship at the school level. The competition is set to begin in September, aligning with the academic calendar as students return from summer vacations.

A total of 867 matches will be played during the tournament — 834 at the regional pool stage and 33 in the knockout round, culminating in a national-level contest among the top-performing schools.

Published in Dawn, July 25th, 2025